Undercover in Bandipore

Before the abrogation of Article 370, who were the actors in Kashmir’s theatre of the absurd? The youngsters who could not escape abroad had to play self-destructive roles decided by manipulators sitting in Pakistan. This riveting narrative delves deep into how Muslim families lost their moorings. A teenaged boy turns to militancy in a desperate quest for employment and identity. A college-going girl is sent to JNU for an insidious agenda of radicalisation of the intelligentsia. Forbidden love blooms but is doomed. The story is told with empathy and passion by a Kashmiri Pandit who is well aware that the exodus of his community was not a triumph for Muslims but an irreparable loss. The modern education they imparted was replaced by rigid dogma. The main protagonist is Barkat, an orphan brought up in Mughalsarai by a beggar. During his sojourn in Kashmir, living in the shadows, he discovers that a proud society can be saved only if it takes charge of its own destiny. This is also a dirge for a composite culture that was systematically destroyed. The underlying theme is that nativity in universality is the way out of the morass.

About the Author

Ashok Kaul is Emeritus Professor of Sociology at Banaras Hindu University, where he has taught for forty years. An acclaimed sociologist, thinker and writer, Kaul has to his credit five books, three on Kashmir, including a fiction Nativity Reclaimed (2017). In addition, he enjoys wide respect and recognition in academic circles thanks to his research papers and popular articles. He was bestowed with three major international fellowships, North-South Dialogue fellowship (Austria), Shastri -Indo Canadian Fellowship and ICCR Chair Abroad at University of Gothenburg, Sweden. Kaul has been visiting fellow at reputed universities of India and overseas, including IIAS Fellow at Baden-Baden, Germany since August 2018.